Points of interest
ST Non’s Chapel was built in 1934 by the Passionist Fathers. It was constructed with stones taken from the ruins of a nearby priory. St Non’s tomb is in the chapel of Dirion in Finistere.
St Non’s Well, according to legend, sprang forth at St David’s birth. It is claimed that the well has curative powers for eye diseases. A shrine was originally built over the well and after Pope Calixtus’s decree that two pilgrimages to St Davids were the equivalent of one pilgrimage to Rome, pilgrimages to the well were popular until the Reformation.
Porth Clais has always been the harbour for St Davids. Records show that coal and limestone were landed at Porth Clais as early as 1384. The lime kilns on the old trading quays were in constant use from 1650 to 1900 producing lime for agriculture and for mortar. The last coal imports to the harbour were in the 1950s for the city’s now demolished gas works. Legend also has it that David was baptised at the head of the creek here by Elvis, Bishop of Munster, at Clegyr Boia (Boia’s Rock). He came into conflict with David when David moved his monastery, then near Carn Llidi, to where the cathedral now stands. The site was owned by Boia and David persuaded him to grant him the land where the cathedral stands.
Tenby is known for its 13th Century town walls and its stretches of sandy shoreline, including Castle Beach. The ruins of Tenby Castle are on a headland overlooking the harbour.
St Catherine’s Island has a wealth of history surrounding it. The island itself was first thought to be a place of Christian worship, but it was turned into a defensive fort by the War Office in 1866 in response to the threat of French invasion. In 1907 the fort was bought by the Windsor Richards family who turned it into a private house and in 1968 the fort was opened as a public zoo.
Only a small tower remains of Tenby Castle, perched on top of Castle Hill, which is almost surrounded by the sea. The old town walls, however, are remarkably complete.
The castle was built by the Normans in the 12th century. There is a record of its capture by the Welsh in 1153.
Tenby was also attacked in 1187 and again in 1260, when Llewellyn the Last sacked the town during his campaigns.
In 1457, the moat, which ran outside the walls where St Florence Parade is now, was widened to 30ft, the walls were heightened and a second, higher series of arrow slits was built, reached by a new parapet walk.
In 1648, a unit of Royalist rebels held the castle for 10 weeks but were starved into surrendering.
The remains of the castle’s gateway cross the path as you climb up Castle Hill from the harbour.
A small tower occupies the highest point on Castle Hill.
The walls on the east side, however, run uninterrupted all the way to The Esplanade.
The main entrance on this side is ‘Five Arches’ gate.
The wonderful church of Penally is dedicated to St Nicholas & St Teilo and is full of historic interest. The two Celtic crosses alone are well worth a trip to see.
Unlike St Nicholas, St Teilo is not so well known outside Wales. Teilo was a 6th Century missionary, thought to be a cousin of St David and a grandson of Ceredig, the ruler of Ceredigion. Perhaps just as importantly, he was born in Penally.
We do not know when the first church was established in Penally but it may have been during Teilo’s lifetime or shortly after. We do know that Penally was a stopover place for pilgrims travelling from Brittany and Cornwall to Ireland. Though the Victorians destroyed much of historical interest, they did make Penally the first church in Wales to be lit by electricity in 1891.
The pride of Penally church is a pair of ancient Celtic crosses in the south transept, thought to date to the 10th century. The crosses stood for over 1,000 years but were moved inside the church for preservation in the 20th Century.
The most interesting is the Penally Cross, a beautifully carved wheel-head cross with ornate carvings on both faces. The cross is decorated with intricate knotwork and scroll designs, with interwoven vines and grape clusters. The sides feature a continuous band of twists and knotwork. The cross dates to the first half of the 19th Century. The stone base that originally supported the cross still stands outside the west end of the church.
The other cross is more fragmentary, but it bears a beautiful carving of ‘gripping beasts’; a pair of grotesque beasts with forelegs and tails interlaced. Each beast has a small animal in its mouth, and each animal devours an end of a vine tendril. This cross is of interest because it combines Celtic, Scandinavian, and Anglo-saxon art. It also dates to the early 10th Century.